Detachable fastening for umbrellas and the like



W. H. BEEHLER. DETACHABLE-FASTENING FOR UMBRELLAS AND THE LIKE. APPLICATION man AUG-6. 1914. RENEWED FEB. I6. 1918.

1,397, 1 59. Patented Nov. 15, 1921..

7M v 2 sn ETS-$H T I. 2 E 3 a ua, $194 W. H. BEEHLER. DETACHABLE FASTENING ron UMBRELLAS AND rm;

LIKE, APPLICATION FILED 'AUG.6, 1914. nzuswsn FEB. 16, 19

Patel'libd-Nov. 15,1921.

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WILLIAM HENRY BEEHLER, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

DETACHABLE FASTENING FOB UMBBIFJLLAS AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 15, 1921.

Application filed August 6, 1914, Serial No. 855,422. Renewed February 16, 1918. Serial No. 217,711.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM HENRY Bnnrrnnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore, Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Detachable Fastenings for Umbrellas and the like, of which the following is a specification.

The invention is especially useful in connection with detachable handles, but may in some cases be used for other separable parts of an umbrella frame or the like. Among the objects of the invention are to provide a strong and durable fastening which will resist longitudinal strains as well as lateral or rotary strains; to secure the two parts together without lost motion; to provide ample dimensions in the head or latch proper and to so design the parts of the device that it can be advantageously manufactured from stock of commercial size. The parts of an umbrella rod as now made are of exceedingly small diameter and it is a very di'fiicult problem to combine with tubular parts of such small dimensions a detacl1- able fastening of suitable characteristics. I obtain the desired results, as will appear later, largely by taking advantage of the thickness of one of the tubular parts, for example by slotting it and permitting certain parts of the spring or spring-securing devices to extend through these slots.

The characteristics and advantages of the invention can best be understood in connection with an explanation of the accompanying drawings which show exemplifying embodiments of the invention. It is to be understood that the invention is capable of em bodiment in many forms and I do not limit myself to details except as claimed hereinafter. T

Figure 1 15 an enlarged longitudinal section of adjacent parts of an umbrella rodend, showing the natural size of the dowel and spring head or latch. I

Fig. 9 is a longitudinal section of another form of the invention.

10 is a section at 10-10, Fig. 9.

F g. 11 is a section at 11, Fig. 9.

Fig. 12 is a section at 12, Fig. 9.

Fig. 13 is a detail showing the method of inserting the spring.

Fig. 14 is a top plan of the dowel and spring, other parts removed.

Referring first to Fig. 1, reference char acter 1 designates a tubular umbrella rod provided with a latch slot 2. The handle 3 18 provided with a tube 4, usually of identical material with the rod 1 and of the same dimensions. In this tube 4:, which may be termed the handle tube, is the dowel 5, usually also tubular, as shown, and extending within the end of the rod a suitable distance to provide transverse strength and prevent looseness, and so on. Within the dowel is the spring 6 having preferably a straight, or approximately straight, shank and terminating at its outer end in a head or latch 7, which may be made of ample vertical dimension so that the latch face 8 will extend sufficiently through both the dowel tube and rod 1, to provide a very effective fastening. The upper corner of the latch face 8 is usually rounded as at 9, to facilitate withdrawal of the dowel and latch, and the face 8 may preferably be made at a slight angle to the vertical, as shown, to tightly draw rod 1 and tube 4 together. The dowel is provided with a slot 10 to accommodate the latch. Near the opposite end the spring shank is provided with a lug 11'engaging a hole 12 punched for it in the dowel. The engagement of this lug with a socket in the dowel positively fixes the position of the latch face 8 in regard to the end of tube 4,

and this, in connection with the accurate formation of latch slot 2 in the rod, so that its end 2 is the proper distance from the end of the rod abutting against tube 4:,

normal shape after insertion.

slot 17 in the dowel and the upper edge of which, 18, underlies the lower edge of the rear end of the spring shank. When the metal parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1, but before tube a is inserted in the handle 3, the tube and dowel parts are locked together by drilling through the tube 4;, dowel 5, and holding piece 13, and inserting a rivet 19. v

It has been said that the head '7 or latch is oflarge dimensions, and it will be noticed that in making it of satisfactorily large dimension, especially in the vertical direction, it is larger than the inner diameter of the dowel. It will also be noticed that the holdingpiece 13, in order to make it of suitable size and form, has a part of larger dimension thanthe inner diameter of the dowel. This being so, it would be impossible to semble the structure if the holding piece and spring were integral and it would also be im possible to insert the latch or holding piece by passing them through the bore of the dowel tube. To preserve the desired characteristics of the latch, spring and holding devices, the spring and holding piece are made separate and the spring is lnserted by passing its smaller end through dowel slot 10 as shown in Fig. 7, the spring shank being bent more or less for this purpose but resuming its lVhen the. spring is in proper position with its lug 11 in socket '12, the holding piecell is put in a )roXimatel the relative )osi'tion shown. in

Fig. 1; but a slight curvature of the spring shank or looseness of the parts, or other reasons, will usually cause the lower edge of the holding pieceto project somewhat beyond the outer diameter of the dowel tube. The dowel with its contained parts is then insert ed in handle tube 41, the inner diameter of which closely approximates the outer diameter'rof the dowel tube, this insertion being usually made with a press or the like. The handle tube thus forces the holding piece 1.3 into place and holds all the parts in proper relative position. serted as previously described and handle tube 4 inserted in asuitable handle.

Fig-.9 shows another form of the invention which obviates the difliculties inprevious structures, although it is not so desirable for some reasons as the structure of Fig. 1.

In this construction the spring is an integral structure having a shank 20. with hub or latch 21 atone end and an enlarged butt 22 at the other end. Thisbutt or spring-base has a loweredge 23 extending through a slot 2 1 ingth'een'd of the dowel tube, and at the opposite sideithe spring-base has a lug 25 extending through a socket 526 inthe opposite Wall of the tube. .The vertical dimension of thezlatch head isasla-rge as-will permit it v.to pass through.the dowel tube and the head is :insertedv from the rear end, as shown in The rivet 19 is then iii-- Fig. 13, and by somewhat springing the shank 20 the head will come into position in the dowel slot 10 and the butt or base 22 will come into position with its lower edge 23 in slot 24 and lug'25 in socket 26, as shown. The handle tube 1 is then forced into position over the dowel tube firmly securing the spring in position, and all the parts are then permanently locked by drilling, and inserting rivet 27. On account of the method of assembly, head 21 must be made as small as the inner diameter of the dowel tube. In this structure the spring is not subject to permanent deformation, resulting in loosening oi? the handle tube and rod in relation to ear-h other. For some reasons, however, largely manufacturing considerations, the form shown in Fig. 1 is more practical and advantageous.

Fig. 8 shows the natural size of the handle tube 4 and dowel 5. The rod stock is usually of steel in a standard mill size, and this standard size must be used both to conform with the demand for umbrella rods of small size and to secure the rod stock at a coinn ercial. price. Much diflicultyis encountered in figures, such as 2 to5 inclusive, demonstrates what would not ordinarily be apparent that even the full inside diameters of the tubes cannot be used in practical constructions, because the necessary thickness of the spring parts and the fact that they must be produced economically by punching, with squared edges, causes the edges of the spring parts and fastening parts, as 6, 13 1) to occupy within'the tubes the place of chords of the circle formed by the inner surface of the handle tube a, the distance from chord to chord through the center being, of course, appreciably less than the actual diameter o1 the tube. lVhen it is remembered that the inside diameter of this tube is only .222, the rigid limitations within which the disclosed structures were produced and the necessary study and care for their production will be appreciated.

The standard umbrella rod used is size 47;, having outside diameter of .282 in a wall thick. Thisv leaves the bore or inside diameter of the tube .222". The dowel to fit this diameter must'be approximately .220, allowing avariation of .002 to permit insertion'of rthe dowel. The rods are reamed to vary from .222 to .224. The dowel tube has an outside diameter, therefore, approximately within the limits .218" to .222" outside diameter and varies from .150 to .160. This leaves only .150" to .160 working space in which to place a spring which must look two tubes together, the wall of each of which measures .081 and having a total variation in thickness of .012.

I claim 1. In an umbrella or the like, the combination of a tubular rod having a latch slot, a handle tube abutting against the rod, a dowel permanently fixed in the handle tube and having the protruding part removably inserted in the rod, a spring within the dowel having a latch head extending through the dowel wall to engage said latch slot and also having a lug entering an aperture formed in the dowel wall, a holding piece engaging slots in the dowel Wall and also engaging the spring to lock it in position, said holding piece also engaging the inner surface of the handle tube whereby the dowel, spring and holding piece are mutually locked securely in position.

2. In an umbrella or the like, the combination of aslotted tubular rod, a handle tube, a dowel seated within the handle tube and removably entering the rod, a spring within the dowel having a latch head passinrr through the dowel and engaging the rod slot, and a fastening member for the spring extending across the dowel and having at one edge a lug engaging the dowel wall and opposite said lug having a long edge extending through a slot in the dowel and engaging the inner surface of the handle tube.

3. In an umbrella or the like, the combination of a hollow rod having a latch slot, a handle tube, a dowel permanently seated in the handle tube and having an extension removably entering the rod, a spring having an approximately straight shank located within the dowel near one side thereof and having a head extending through the wall of the dowel and engaging said latch slot, said spring also having a lug engaging a socket in the dowel Wall near one end of said shank and a holding piece separate from the spring having an end substantially equal to the diameter of the dowel and extending through opposite slots in the dowel wall and engaging the inner surface of the handle tube, said holding piece also having an extension, one edge of which engages the sprin shank to hold the spring in position and the other edge of which hes in one of said slots in the dowel and engages with the inner surface of the handle-tube.

4. In a detachable handle for umbrellas and the like, the combination of a tubular dowel having a latch slot on one side and a spring latch having an approximately straight shank and a latch head substantially as deep in the plane of the latch slot at least as the inner diameter of the dowel tube, the dimension of the shank in the same plane adjacent to the latch head being relatively small to permit the latch head to protrude amply through the latch slot, a holding device at the endof the shank remote from the latch head, the dimension of said device in the above mentioned plane being greater than the inside diameter of the dowel tube, the tube being provided with substantially opposite openings to receive portions of said holding device, and a handle tube closely fitting outside the dowel tube V and secure to it to lock the other parts in position.

5. In a detachable handle for umbrellas and the like, the combination of a tubular dowel having a latch slot, a latch having a relatively lon and narrow and approxi mately straight shank and a head dimensioned to extend well outward through the latch slot, the shank being provided with a projection at one edge near the end remote from the head, and a separate holding piece inserted within the end of the dowel tube and engaging the latch, and cooperating with the latch shank and projection to lock the latch in position in the tube.

WILLIAM HENRY BEEHLER.

Witnesses:

M. L. NEWCOMB, M. A. Wool). 

